Analysis of Educational Content on Vegetarian Diets in Middle School Home Economics Textbooks: Development of an Assessment Tool and Comparison of Cases from Five Countries

As the awareness of sustainable diets and cultural diversity has increased, so has the need for educational content on vegetarian diets in schools. This study analyzes and compares the educational content on vegetarian diets in middle school home economics textbooks across five countries: South Korea, Finland, Sweden, the United States, and Australia. This study quantitatively assessed the educational content on vegetarian diets and analyzed the content structure and teaching-learning approaches presented in the textbooks. For this assessment, Vegetarian Diet Education Content Assessment Tool for middle school home economics textbooks (VeDECAT) was developed and applied to one textbook from each country. The VeDECAT comprised four criteria—level appropriateness, accuracy, neutrality, and novelty/motivation—and ten assessment items. Each item was scored as excellent, average, or poor, corresponding to 10, 5, or 0 points, respectively, for a maximum total score of 100 points. Australia received the highest score (100 points), followed by the United States (70 points), Sweden and South Korea (60 points each), and Finland (45 points). The analysis revealed cross-country differences in content structure and teaching-learning approaches to vegetarian diets. In the Korean textbook, the content was presented as a supplementary discussion topic at the end of the unit, with limited visual materials, practical activities, and structured assessment items. The VeDECAT can serve as a standardized tool for evaluating the educational content on vegetarian diets in home economics textbooks. The findings highlight the need to strengthen and expand the educational content on vegetarian diets in Korean textbooks by including explicit explanations and visual materials.